Hand Tool Friendly Wood to Ebonize

[Bill Haumann]

I will be making a frame/box that needs to be black. I don't want to paint it, and prefer to use something more easily worked than blackwood or ebony. Any suggestions for a hand tool friendly wood that will Ebonize well?

[Klaus Kretschmar]

Hello Bill,

Pear wood is easy to work with and it´s very dense and easy to be ebonized. In Germany it´s the typically used wood if the workpiece shall be ebonized.

Klaus

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

That was my thought - pear is frequently used in musical instruments for woodwind or parts of string instruments, and dyed black. My impression is it was used usually for lower quality instruments where when dyed black it's a cheaper or more readily available replacement for tropical woods, but that's may be an unjust conclusion based solely on the quality of the instruments I've encountered it on. In my limited experience it's quite pleasing to work with.

Also - not all ebonies are the same, at least as far as working properties. I've used a few different kinds for instrument fretboards, and small parts of electric guitars. Some are quite splintery and tear-out-prone, but some chisel and plane beautifully and hold detail quite well. I know some of the woods sold to me as a type of ebony probably aren't true ebonies, (which would be Diospyros genus, I believe?) and I can never remember what type is what. I believe Gabon Ebony was the last type I worked with that I found quite pleasing to work with, but don't quote me on that!

[george wilson]

The most realistic looking wood I used for ebonizing was English Walnut. It has small pores,and closely resembles Gaboon ebony when stained black.

Of course,Pearwood has been used forever as a substitute for ebony fingerboards on cheaper violins.

The trouble with most black stains is that they are either dark brown or dark blue when you smear just a little bit on the wood. We made a good black stain from steel turnings,vinegar,and oak galls. Behlen used to sell oak gall powder. I don't know if they still do or not. It is the stain I used in my Musical Instrument Maker film made in Wmsbg. in 1974. An 18th.C. recipe. The spinet we copied had pearwood sharps stained black. It was from 1699.

[Greg Wease]

I'm with George. Drop a couple steel wool pads in some vinegar for a week or so and paint it on walnut (after completing your box) for a "natural" black. You can stain over that if you want it even blacker. Walnut and hand tools go well together.

[Alan Schwabacher]

India ink on maple works well.

[george wilson]

Failing to get nut galls,you could likely just make some oak sawdust and substitute that. It's just the tannin you need,and oak has plenty of that.

[Stephen Pereira]

Failing to get nut galls,you could likely just make some oak sawdust and substitute that. It's just the tannin you need,and oak has plenty of that.

Oak sawdust..now why didn't I think of that when I ebonized some ash? I bought quebracho bark from a taxidermy supply co. Let me know if you need some..I have enough to last me a lifetime.

[Bill Haumann]

Thanks everyone. Very helpful. How different would American walnut be from English for these purposes?

[Kent A Bathurst]

Oak sawdust..now why didn't I think of that when I ebonized some ash? I bought quebracho bark from a taxidermy supply co. Let me know if you need some..I have enough to last me a lifetime.

Thnx.......but you're a bit late........mine arrived last week..........:D

[george wilson]

American walnut doesn't have the same appearance in its pores as English walnut.The English has smaller pores that more closely resemble ebony.

[ray hampton]

tannin acid , how do black tea stack up on the tannin acid ?

[John Coloccia]

FWIW, if the box is small my initial though would have been Boxwood if it's available in your area. Finding it in anything byt small pieces can be a challenge as the tree grows very slowly.

[William Allen]

India ink on maple works well.

In 1990 I built a coffee table out of hard maple and I dyed the base black with alcohol soluble aniline dye. 20 years later and it's still black. The best part is I can touch up the dings with a sharpie permanent marker.